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Heat wave forces Kirchheim schools to take drastic measures!
Oral Abitur exams in Kirchheim Unter Teck take place during a heat wave; Students fight with heat and room temperatures.
Heat wave forces Kirchheim schools to take drastic measures!
In the past few days, the situation at the schools in Kirchheim has dramatically intensified due to a continuing heat wave. The temperatures exceed the 30-degree mark, which leads to significant restrictions in the classroom. The oral high school exams at the Kirchheim high schools, which take place in these hot days, receive special attention. These exams, which have been carried out since Monday and have been going on until Wednesday, are limited to a maximum of two exams per day, each lasting 20 minutes. Headmaster Martin Roll from the Ludwig-Fuhland-Gymnasium states that the exams start early in the morning and usually end around 3 p.m.
The affected schools, which also include the Schlossgymnasium, the Alleenschule as well as several primary and secondary schools, try to offer the students the best possible conditions. For this purpose, fans are used and cooler rooms are sought. Nevertheless, the lessons are partially canceled on afternoons, which concerns not only the high school graduates, but also the elementary school students.
heat -free and health risks
Not only in Kirchheim schools are affected by the heat. Over Germany, such as at the Friedrich-Ebert-Gymnasium in Bonn, heat-free measures were taken for the secondary levels. The lesson was brought forward to up to 12:10 p.m. This is part of a bigger problem that makes educational institutions create. The VBE Baden-Württemberg points out that overheating in classrooms can cause health problems such as dizziness and concentration disorders.
Even at temperatures above 26 degrees, the cognitive performance of the students drops significantly. The numbers speak for themselves: Since the 1960s, the hot days in Germany have more than doubled, which is an alarming development. The average value rose from 4.2 heat days per year (1961-1990) to 8.9 heat days (1991-2020). The record year 2018 was particularly striking with 20.4 heat days.
The demands for changes
The structural situation in many schools is alarming. Many classrooms still date from the 1960s and 1970s, are poorly insulated and have no air conditioning systems. In a need for reform, the Ministry of Culture in Baden-Württemberg provides for recommendations that have no mandatory character. At over 27 degrees, only a “flexible teaching form” is recommended, which shows little effectiveness in practice.
The VBE Baden-Württemberg has clear demands on politics, including binding limit values for room temperatures and retrofitting obligations for schools. Initiative such as "Green School Höfe", which are committed to the removal and greening of school premises, are also part of the solution. However, it remains to be seen whether the necessary political steps will be taken to make school buildings as a climate in terms of life and work.
In view of these challenges, headmaster Martin Roll calls on the urgent review of air conditioning in classrooms. In his own schools, five rooms are not usable on the third floor due to the overheating - a situation that urgently requires a solution in order not to endanger the health of the students and the quality of the lesson.For more information on the current developments in schools during the heat wave, read more in the reports of Teckbote and News4teachers .